LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA Stake Reduced by Annex Advisory Services LLC

Key Points

• Annex Advisory Services cut its LPL Financial stake by 89.1% in the third quarter, selling 10,810 shares and retaining 1,318 shares worth approximately $403,000. Institutional investors collectively own 95.66% of the company.
• LPL Financial reported quarterly revenue of $5.19 billion and EPS of $5.84, exceeding analyst expectations; revenue increased 35.2% year over year.
• Analysts maintain a favorable outlook, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $409.69, compared with the stock’s reported opening price of $320.96.

Annex Advisory Services LLC lessened its position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 89.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,318 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 10,810 shares during the quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC's holdings in LPL Financial were worth $403,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 2.5% during the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 1,459 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $446,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its stake in LPL Financial by 0.7% in the first quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 5,705 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,716,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Group Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in LPL Financial by 0.7% in the first quarter. Sterling Group Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,869 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,766,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Berger Financial Group Inc raised its stake in LPL Financial by 6.1% in the first quarter. Berger Financial Group Inc now owns 749 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $225,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Central Pacific Bank Trust Division lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 1,230 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $346,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at LPL Financial

In related news, Director Greg Gates sold 4,119 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.38, for a total transaction of $1,463,810.22. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 23,602 shares in the company, valued at $8,387,678.76. This represents a 14.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Katharine Reeping sold 440 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $347.88, for a total transaction of $153,067.20. Following the sale, the insider owned 1,774 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $617,139.12. This represents a 19.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 5,867 shares of company stock valued at $2,079,664. Insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LPLA opened at $320.96 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $25.27 billion, a PE ratio of 25.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 2.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $260.15 and a 52-week high of $400.16. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $342.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $320.14.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $5.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.39 by $0.45. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 32.20% and a net margin of 5.13%. The firm had revenue of $5.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.51 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 35.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 23.83 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. LPL Financial's payout ratio is presently 9.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on LPLA. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on LPL Financial in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $362.00 price objective for the company. Capital One Financial set a $370.00 price objective on LPL Financial in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Barclays raised their target price on LPL Financial from $401.00 to $409.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Bank of America decreased their target price on LPL Financial from $557.00 to $554.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on LPL Financial from $428.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, LPL Financial has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $409.69.

LPL Financial Company Profile

LPL Financial Holdings Inc is a financial services company that supports independent financial advisors and institutions across the United States. Through its primary subsidiary, LPL Financial LLC, the company provides brokerage, investment advisory, and custodial services, enabling advisors to serve individual investors, families, retirement plans, and other clients.

LPL's platform includes access to brokerage and advisory products, securities clearing and custody, trading and operations support, technology, compliance services, investment research, and practice-management resources.

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